Christopher Dorner: A Cop Killing Killer Cop or A Real Life Django?

An observation: If Facebook is any barometer of the public sentiment, there are more than a few who consider Christopher Dorner as something more than a cop killing killer cop. They see him as a real life Django Who’s Off the Chain.

The problem with this is “Django” Dorner murdered Monica Quan and her fiancé, Keith Lawrence. Quan was Asian and Lawrence was Black. Not quite the same thing as killing racist slave owners.

A week ago, Dorner was just another disgraced ex-cop nursing grudges real and imagined. Nobody knew who he was and nobody gave a damn. Now he’s a half-assed folk hero because he’s shooting down cops and family members of his tormentors?

Frankly, I’m not that hard up for that kind of “hero.” I prefer mine not to be targeting the families of his supposed enemies.

His irrational, self-pitying, “I’m a good guy” rationalizations and vicious bullshit aside, there are parts of Dorner’s 11,000 word, mad manifesto that makes for riveting reading.

I know I will be villified by the LAPD and the media. Unfortunately, this is a necessary evil that I do not enjoy but must partake and complete for substantial change to occur within the LAPD and reclaim my name. The department has not changed since the Rampart and Rodney King days. It has gotten worse. The consent decree should never have been lifted. The only thing that has evolved from the consent decree is those officers involved in the Rampart scandal and Rodney King incidents have since promoted to supervisor, commanders, and command staff, and executive positions.

So why didn’t Dorner take his story to the media or the Justice Department? Maybe because talk is cheap and accusations are easy?

Going through the process of taking a story to the press or filing a complaint or a lawsuit can be a costly, time-consuming process. It’s so much easier just to pick up a gun and start dispensing your own “justice.”

While on a assigned patrol footbeat in Hollywood Division, Officers Hermilio Buridios IV and Marlon Magana (both current LAPD officers) decided that they would voice their personal feelings about the black community. While traveling back to the station in a 12 passenger van I heard Magana refer to another individual as a nigger. I wasn’t sure if I heard correctly as there were many conversations in the van that was compiled of at least 8 officers and he was sitting in the very rear and me in the very front. Even with the multiple conversations and ambient noise I heard Officer Magana call an indivdual a nigger again. Now that I had confirmed it, I told Magana not to use that word again. I explained that it was a well known offensive word that should not be used by anyone. He replied, “I’ll say it when I want”. Officer Burdios, a friend of his, also stated that he would say nigger when he wanted. At that point I jumped over my front passenger seat and two other officers where I placed my hands around Burdios’ neck and squeezed. I stated to Burdios, “Don’t fucking say that”. At that point there was pushing and shoving and we were separated by several other officers. What I should have done, was put a Winchester Ranger SXT 9mm 147 grain bullet in his skull and Officer Magana’s skull. The Situation would have been resolved effective, immediately. The sad thing about this incident was that when Detective Ty from internal affairs investigated this incident only (1) officer (unknown) in the van other than myself had statements constistent with what actually happened. The other six officers (John Carey, Gary Parker, Jacob Waks, Abraham Schefres and names I have forgotten) all stated they heard nothing and saw nothing. Shame on every one of you. Shame on Detective Ty (same ethnicity as Burdios) for creating a separate 1.28 formal complaint against me (Schefres complaint) in retaliation for initiating the complaint against Burdios and Magana. Don’t retaliate against honest officers for breaking your so called blue line. I hope your son Ryan Ty, who I knew, is a better officer than you, Detective Ty.The saddest part of this ordeal was that Officer Burdios and Magana were only given 22 day suspensions and are still LAPD officers to this day. That day, the LAPD stated that it is acceptable for fellow officers to call black officers niggers to their face and you will receive a slap on the wrist. Even sadder is that during that 22 day suspension Buridios and Magana received is that the LAPPL (Los Angeles Police Protective League) paid the officers their salaries while they were suspended. When I took a two day suspension for an accidental discharge, I took my suspension and never applied for a league salary. Its called integrity.

I would probably find it upsetting if two of my co-workers were casually dropping “nigger” bombs in my presence, but I can’t find the “integrity” in Dorner’s response of “I placed my hands around Burdios’ neck and squeezed” or musing “What I should have done, was put a Winchester Ranger SXT 9mm 147 grain bullet in his skull and Officer Magana’s skull.”

The thought that a guy who reacts so irrationally and violently his default setting is to strangle first and blow away second his colleagues that annoy him makes me wonder how Dorner passed the psych exams to become a cop in the first place.

Next I ask myself how many Chris Dorners are still on the LAPD, armed, dangerous and tick-tick-ticking?

Two of the innocents struck down by Dorner’s wrath

I am here to change and make policy. The culture of LAPD versus the community and honest/good officers needs to and will change. I am here to correct and calibrate your morale compasses to true north.

Those Caucasian officers who join South Bureau divisions (77th,SW,SE, an Harbor) with the sole intent to victimize minorities who are uneducated, and unaware of criminal law, civil law, and civil rights. You prefer the South bureau because a use of force/deadly force is likely and the individual you use UOF on will likely not report it. You are a high value target.

Those Black officers in supervisory ranks and pay grades who stay in south bureau (even though you live in the valley or OC) for the sole intent of getting retribution toward subordinate caucasians officers for the pain and hostile work environment their elders inflicted on you as probationers (P-1’s) and novice P-2’s. You are a high value target. You perpetuated the cycle of racism in the department as well. You breed a new generation of bigoted caucasian officer when you belittle them and treat them unfairly.

Those Hispanic officers who victimize their own ethnicity because they are new immigrants to this country and are unaware of their civil rights. You call them wetbacks to their face and demean them in front of fellow officers of different ethnicities so that you will receive some sort of acceptance from your colleagues. I’m not impressed. Most likely, your parents or grandparents were immigrants at one time, but you have forgotten that. You are a high value target.

Those lesbian officers in supervising positions who go to work, day in day out, with the sole intent of attempting to prove your misandrist authority (not feminism) to degrade male officers. You are a high value target.

Those Asian officers who stand by and observe everything I previously mentioned other officers participate in on a daily basis but you say nothing, stand for nothing and protect nothing. Why? Because of your usual saying, ” I……don’t like conflict”. You are a high value target as well.

Those of you who “go along to get along” have no backbone and destroy the foundation of courage. You are the enablers of those who are guilty of misconduct. You are just as guilty as those who break the code of ethics and oath you swore.

Citizens/non-combatants, do not render medical aid to downed officers/enemy combatants. They would not do the same for you. They will let you bleed out just so they can brag to other officers that they had a 187 caper the other day and can’t wait to accrue the overtime in future court subpoenas. As they always say, “that’s the paramedics job…not mine”. Let the balance of loss of life take place. Sometimes a reset needs to occur.

A psychologist would have a field day with Dorner’s manifesto. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson or Vin Diesel will probably play him in the inevitable movie. There might be a pretty good book to be written about this

Unfortunately, there are still three people dead, another wounded and a nervous LAPD shooting the wrong people because they’re looking over their shoulders (and who wouldn’t after those threats).

I wouldn’t be surprised if this story concludes with Dorner face down in a pool of blood. In fact, I’d only be surprised if it doesn’t end that way.

Our job as journalists is to report the news and let the public decide. Dorner isn’t the first killer who wanted the world to acknowledge his grievances. The Unibomber had a manifesto too, remember. As professionals we have to discern between reporting the news and enabling a murderer.

Yeah, there are nuggets of truth in Dorner’s manifesto. But there’s this as well: “I will bring unconventional and asymmetrical warfare to those in LAPD uniform whether on or off duty” and “I never had the opportunity to have a family of my own, I’m terminating yours. ”

His own selfish, evil and cowardly decisions have invalidated his arguments. He’s no damn hero. He’s just a killer who needs to be arrested if possible or put down like a rabid dog in the street if it isn’t possible.

Christopher Dorner is not my idea of a “hero” or a real-life Django sticking it to the Man. My heroes aren’t killers. The standards of others may be somewhat lower.

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2 thoughts on “Christopher Dorner: A Cop Killing Killer Cop or A Real Life Django?”

He whines about not having family, but he does. He has alienated them, and it was something serious enough that they have put distance between themselves and him. A former girlfriend in Long Beach spoke about his paranoia and love of weaponry as reasons for her leaving him…and having to get an order of protection against him. His marriage lasted a month. This is a man with some *serious* issues. I have read that he has a 50-cal weapon. Is it any wonder the cops are on edge? He could snipe at them from anywhere. That weapon will make mincemeat of anything; body armor, vehicles, it won’t matter if he uses that against them.

This man has put the entire southern portion of the state in a panic. A lunatic is on the loose. Yes, this will end in violence, whether it’s “suicide by cop” or he puts a bullet in his own head. I only hope that more innocents aren’t victimized before that happens.

So the LAPD has issues, unaddressed for decades. This doesn’t come as news to anyone I don’t think. He is an example of the problem in many big city police departments, shoddy background checks, shoddy follow up on loose cannons.

Like you, I have a high standard for my heroes. He doesn’t fit the bill. He is a murderer, a killer of innocents. This will end badly no matter how it ends.